Let us enjoy reading this Chinese Story of Chicken Feed.
Duan Guangqinj was a Chinese magistrate who lived about a hundred years ago. He was famed for the fairness of his judgments.
One day while the magistrate was walking through a market he saw a crowd outside a poultry shop. On enquiring what the matter was he learnt that a peasant had accidentally dropped a heavy sack on a chicken, crushing it to death. The chicken was small, worth only about five coins, but the owner of the shop had caught the peasant by his throat and was demanding a hundred. His argument was that the chicken would have grown into a plump bird in another two years and then it would have fetched him the amount he was asking for.
Somebody recognized the magistrate, and everybody made way for him.
“Judge our case, My Lord!" said the owner of the chicken, letting go of the peasant and bowing obsequiously to the magistrate. “This man, through his carelessness has caused the death of a chicken that would have fetched me a hundred coins in another two years!"
Fear had made the peasant’s speech incoherent. Nobody could understand what he was saying.
“The price put on the chicken is hundred coins," said the magistrate, to the peasant. “I advise you to pay."
There was a gasp from the crowd. Everybody had expected the magistrate to rule in the peasant’s favor.
The owner of the chicken was overjoyed.
“They said you were fair in your judgments, My Lord," he said, rubbing his hands in glee, “now I can say there is no one fairer than you!"
“The Law is always fair," smiled the magistrate. “Tell me, how much grain does a chicken eat in a year?"
“About half a sack," said the poultry shop owner.
“So in two years the chicken that died would have eaten a whole sack of grain," said Duan Guangqinj. “Please give the sack of grain you’ve saved to this man."
The chicken owner turned pale. A sack of grain would cost more than hundred coins.Cowed by the jeers of the crowd, he declared he would not take any money from the peasant, and retreated into the safety of his shop.
讓我們好好讀一讀這個中國雞飼料的故事吧。
段廣勤是一位生活在大約一百年前的中國治安官。他以公正的判斷著稱。
一天，當治安官走過一個市場時，他看見一家家禽店外有一群人。他一問到底是怎麼回事，就知道一個農民不小心把一個沉重的袋子落在了一隻雞上，把它壓死了。這隻雞很小，只值五個硬幣，但是店主抓住了農夫的喉嚨，要一百塊錢。他的論點是，這隻雞在兩年內就會長成一隻豐滿的小鳥，然後它就會滿足他的要求。
有人認出了治安官，大家都替他讓路。
“法官大人，審判我們的案件！”雞的主人說，放開農夫，恭敬地向治安官鞠躬。“這個人，由於粗心大意，造成了一隻雞的死亡，再過兩年，我就可以得到一百個硬幣了！”
恐懼使農民的講話語無倫次。沒人能理解他在說什麼。
“雞肉的價格是一百個硬幣，”治安官對農民說。“我建議你付錢。”
人群中傳來一陣喘息聲。人人都希望治安官能以農民的利益為重。
這隻雞的主人高興極了。
“他們說你的判斷是公正的，大人，”他高興地搓著雙手說，“現在我可以說沒有比你更公正的了！”
“法律總是公平的，”治安官笑著說。“告訴我，一隻雞一年吃多少糧食？”
“大約半袋，”家禽店老闆說。
段廣勤說：“所以在兩年內，死的雞會吃掉一整袋糧食。”“請把你省下來的一袋糧食給這個人。”
小雞的主人面色蒼白。一袋糧食要花上一百多個硬幣，他被群眾的嘲笑嚇壞了，宣佈不從農民那裡拿任何錢，退到商店的安全地帶。
